The Best and Worst U.S. Cities for Your Health

In the healthiest, most fit city in the U.S., there are fewer smokers and
more farmers markets, dog parks and people taking public
transportation. Just where is this magical place, and what should you do
if you don't live there?

For the second year in a row, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn., is the healthiest, fittest metropolitan area in the United States, according to The American Fitness Index (AFI). The AFI, developed by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), is a comprehensive look at health and fitness in the 50 largest US metropolitan areas — think of it as a report card, in which cities are ranked from best to worst. The goal of the AFI, according to their report, is “to help improve the health of the nation by promoting active lifestyles and by supporting local programming to develop a sustainable, healthy community culture.”

Minneapolis-St. Paul scored 76.4 out of out of 100 possible points based on a wide variety of factors including diet, exercise habits, percentage of smokers, chronic disease rates, availability of parks and athletic fields, number of farmers markets, school policies regarding physical education, access to health care and much more.

Washington, D.C., placed second, followed by Boston, San Francisco and Hartford, Conn. Austin, Texas, came in 10th place; New York City is No. 22; Chicago is No. 28; and Los Angeles is No. 38.

What’s so great about Minneapolis-St. Paul? The area boasts a higher than average percentage of people who engaged in physical activity or exercise in the last 30 days (82.9 percent), as well as a higher than average percentage of people who are at least moderately active on a regular basis (54.5 percent). They also have a lower percentage of people with diabetes and cardiovascular disease, as well as a higher percentage of residents using public transportation to go to work; more farmers markets, parklands, dog parks and recreation centers; and a higher level of state requirement for physical education classes.

The Twin Cities do have some room for improvement though — according to AFI, they have a lower than average percentage of people eating five-plus servings of fruits/vegetables per day and a higher than average asthma rate.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, coming in dead last for the second time in a row and scoring only 28.2 points is Oklahoma City, Okla. By comparison to Minneapolis-St. Paul, Oklahoma City only excels in two areas: they have more acres of parkland per capita and and more golf courses per capita. On all other fronts, they score below average. Also in the bottom five: Detroit (49th), Louisville, Ky. (48th), Dallas (47th) and Birmingham, Ala. (46th).

Now, if you don’t happen to live in Minneapolis, don’t worry. “Although many people will gravitate to which cities are fit or less fit, it’s important to remember that there is room for improvement in every community,” says Walter Thompson, PhD, chair of the AFI Advisory Board. “It’s also worth noting that even the lowest-ranked areas have healthy residents and community resources that support health and fitness.”

Hear, hear! Here are three ways to help make sure YOU’RE one of the healthiest, fittest residents no matter where you live!